Revision total knee arthroplasty (TKA)

Despite the long-term clinical and radiographic success that has been reported with total knee arthroplasty (TKA), many failure-related factors continue to limit survivorship of TKA implants. Revision TKA, also known as revision surgery of the knee, presents several technical challenges and decisions for the orthopaedic surgeon. The cause of failure must be diagnosed prior to embarking on revision surgery, and accurate preoperative planning, including new radiographs, ordering necessary equipment as specific prosthetic components, extraction devices, and bone graft materials, is an imperative step. The principles of revision TKA are similar to those of primary surgery; however, in some cases surgical exposure requires the use of extensile exposure techniques, and bone defects will be managed with bone grafts or prosthetic augmentation.